One of the oldest religions of humanity The religion of the Indian people Gave birth to Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism Tolerance and diversity: "Truth is one, paths are many" Many “deities” but a single, impersonal Ultimate Reality [Brahman] A philosophy and a way of life – focused both on this world and beyond
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One of the oldest religions of humanity The religion of the Indian people Gave birth to Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism Tolerance and diversity: "Truth is one, paths are
many" Many “deities” but a single, impersonal Ultimate
Reality [Brahman] A philosophy and a way of life – focused both on
this world and beyond
No particular founder Indus River Valley Civilization >5000 years ago Aryans enter 4000 - 3500 years ago Vedic Tradition 3500 – 2500 years ago:
rituals and many gods (polytheism) sacred texts (Vedas) social stratification (varnas) Upanishads (metaphysical philosophy) added to
Vedas 2800 – 2400 years ago
Vedic Tradition develops into Hinduism
Monism is the view in metaphysics that reality is a unified whole and that all existing things can be ascribed to or described by a single concept or system. (also referred to as pantheism)
Brahman is the eternal, unchanging, infinite, immanent, and transcendent reality which is the Divine Ground of all matter, energy, time, space, being, and everything beyond in this Universe.
Deva: Sanskrit word for a benevolent supernatural being (deity)
Devi: feminine form
.Another way to say this is that Devas and Devis are manifestations of aspects of Brahman, who are emotionally and intellectually accessible by the limited human senses
There are as many as 300 million Devas and Devis worshipped by Hindus
Four stages of life – student, householder, retired, renunciant
Four duties of life – pleasure, success, social responsibilities, religious responsibilities
Yoga: to join or unite Marga: teaching or path of a yoga
The Four Yogas - seeking union with ultimate reality:
Karma-marga– the path of action through selfless service (releases built up karma without building up new karma)
Jnana-marga – the path of knowledge (understanding the true nature of reality and the self)
Raja-marga – the path of meditation Bhakti-marga – the path of devotion to a Deva or Devi Guru – a spiritual teacher (also, yogi)
Brahma, the creator deva
Vishnu, the preserver deva
Incarnates as ten avatars (descends) including: Rama (featured in the Ramayana) Krishna (featured in the Bhagavad-gita)
(Each shown with his consort, Sita and Radha, respectively)
Shiva, deva of constructive destruction (the transformer)
Appears as Shiva Nataraj, lord of the dance of creation…
and with his wife, Parvati, and son Ganesha (the elephant headed remover of obstacles)
Saraswati, goddess of wisdom, consort of Brahma
Lakshmi, goddess of good fortune, consort of Vishnu
Parvati, divine mother, wife of Shiva
Durga, protectress
Kali, destroyer of demons Plus about 330 million other deities
All these deities are but Manifest forms (attributes
and functions) of the impersonal Brahman
“We are not human beings having spiritual experiences;
We are spiritual beings having a human experience!”
“That Thou art” Hinduism is about recognizing the all
pervasiveness of the divine
The Hindu Universe: Lots of information on Hinduism and the Hindu community on-line and around the world. Includes chat rooms and message board forums - www.hindunet.org
The Virtual Hindu Temple: Contains some interesting and useful pages including: Discover Hindu Gods & Goddesses and FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT HINDUISM. Also contains a gallery of deity images and a collection of links to Hindu sacred texts online and other sites related to Hinduism - www.rajdeepa.com/vmandir/vmandirindex.htm
Hinduism for Schools provides basic, introductory info to teach primary and secondary level students about Hinduism - www.btinternet.com/~vivekananda/schools1.htm